Retained Urethral Catheter in the Ureter Following Misplaced Insertion in a Postpartum Female.

Background: Urethral catheterization is a common procedure, with a low complication rate. Aberrant catheterization into a ureter is a rare complication. We present a case of an aberrant urethral catheterization into the right ureter in a postpartum female. Case Presentation: An 18-year-old primigravida female presented with loin pain and catheter bypassing after a postpartum urethral catheterization. Examination under anesthesia and cystoscopy revealed the catheter leading into the right ureter, which was confirmed by subsequent CT urogram. Multiple attempts to remove the catheter failed. A rigid ureteroscopy was performed, revealing "kinking" of the catheter just distal to the balloon, as a result of an asymmetrical inflated balloon. A laser fiber inserted through the ureteroscope punctured the balloon, allowing balloon deflation and catheter removal under screening. A relook ureteroscopy 8 weeks later confirmed a healed ureter. Conclusion: Asymmetric catheter balloon inflation causes kinking of a catheter and occlusion of the balloon port that will prohibit balloon deflation. During rigid ureteroscopy, a laser fiber can be used to puncture the catheter balloon, allowing balloon deflation and catheter removal.

Preoperative Cardiac Risk Assessment.

Major adverse cardiac events are common causes of perioperative mortality and major morbidity. Preventing these complications requires thorough preoperative risk assessment and postoperative monitoring of at-risk patients. Major guidelines recommend assessment based on a validated risk calculator that incorporates patient- and procedure-specific factors. American and European guidelines define when stress testing is needed on the basis of functional capacity assessment. Favoring cost-effectiveness, Canadian guidelines instead recommend obtaining brain natriuretic peptide or N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide levels to guide postoperative screening for myocardial injury or infarction. When conditions such as acute coronary syndrome, severe pulmonary hypertension, and decompensated heart failure are identified, nonemergent surgery should be postponed until the condition is appropriately managed. There is an evolving role of biomarkers and myocardial injury after noncardiac surgery to enhance risk stratification, but the effect of interventions guided by these strategies is unclear.

Vitreomacular interface abnormalities in patients with diabetic macular oedema and their implications on the response to anti-VEGF therapy.

PURPOSE: To determine whether the presence of vitreomacular interface abnormalities (VMIA) in patients with diabetic macular oedema (DMO) modifies the response to ranibizumab. METHODS: Medical records and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) scans of consecutive patients with centre-involving DMO initiating therapy with ranibizumab between December 2013 and March 2014 at the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust were reviewed. Patients were identified through an electronic database. Demographics; systemic baseline characteristics; history of previous ocular surgery/laser; best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central retinal thickness (CRT) and stage of retinopathy at presentation; and BCVA, CRT and presence/absence of fluid at the last follow-up were recorded. OCT scans were reviewed by a masked investigator who graded them for the presence/absence of VMIA at baseline and during follow-up and for the change in the posterior hyaloid face during follow-up. The association between (1) VMIA at baseline and (2) the change in the posterior hyaloid face during the follow-up and functional/anatomical outcomes was evaluated. RESULTS: One hundred forty-six eyes of 100 patients (mean age 63.5 years) followed for a mean of 9 months (range 2-14 months; only 9/146 dropped to follow-up before month 6) were included. Statistically significant differences were observed at baseline in BCVA (p = 0.007), previous macular laser and panretinal photocoagulation (PRP) (p = 0.006) and previous cataract surgery (p = 0.01) between eyes with and without VMIA, with better levels of vision, higher frequency of macular laser and lower frequency of PRP in eyes where no VMIA was present. Multivariable regression analysis did not disclose any statistically significant associations between VMIA at baseline or change in the posterior hyaloid face during the follow-up and functional and anatomical outcomes following treatment. CONCLUSION: VMIA are associated with worse presenting vision in patients with DMO; VMIA or change in the posterior hyaloid face during the follow-up did not modify the response to ranibizumab in this study.

Perioperative Cardiovascular Medication Management in Noncardiac Surgery: Common Questions.

Several medications have been used perioperatively in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery in an attempt to improve outcomes. Antiplatelet therapy for primary prevention of cardiovascular events should generally be discontinued seven to 10 days before surgery to avoid increasing the risk of bleeding, unless the risk of a major adverse cardiac event exceeds the risk of bleeding. Antiplatelet therapy for secondary prevention should be continued perioperatively, except before procedures with very high bleeding risk, such as intracranial procedures. Antiplatelet drugs should be continued and surgery delayed, if possible, for at least 14 days after percutaneous coronary intervention without stent placement, 30 days after percutaneous coronary intervention with bare-metal stent placement, and six to 12 months after percutaneous coronary intervention with drug-eluting stent placement. Perioperative beta blockers are recommended for patients already receiving these agents, and it is reasonable to consider starting therapy in patients with known or strongly suspected coronary artery disease or who are at high risk of perioperative cardiac events and are undergoing procedures with a high risk of cardiovascular complications. Long-term statin therapy should be continued perioperatively or started in patients with clinical indications who are not already receiving statins. Clonidine should not be started perioperatively, but long-term clonidine regimens may be continued. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers generally can be continued perioperatively if patients are hemodynamically stable and have good renal function and normal electrolyte levels.

Outcome of primary rhegmatogenous retinal detachment surgery in a tertiary referral centre in Northern Ireland - A regional study.

PURPOSE: To report the primary and final success, functional outcome and complication rates of patients with primary rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) who underwent retinal detachment surgery in a tertiary referral centre in Northern Ireland. VENUE: Vitreoretinal service, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, Northern Ireland. METHODS: This is a retrospective case series of all patients who underwent primary RRD repair between 1st of January 2013 and 31st of December 2013. Charts were reviewed. Patients' demographics, overall primary and final success, functional outcome, complication rates were identified and recorded. Subgroup analysis according to lens status and foveal attachment was also performed. RESULTS: A total of 212 cases of primary RRD were included. Mean age at time of surgery was 56.6 years (range 9-90 years); 175(82.5%) had pars plana vitrectomy (PPV), 27 (12.5%), scleral buckle (SB) repair and 10 (5%) pneumatic retinopexy (PR). Overall primary and final success rate were 86% and 95.6% respectively. Overall mean visual acuity improved from 1.1 to 0.4 LogMAR postoperatively after a mean follow-up of 9 months. There was no significant difference in the primary success rate in relation to the baseline lens status (χ2 = 3.4, P = 0.2) and to the baseline macular status (χ2 = 0.6, P = 0.7). Presence of proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) negatively affected the primary success rate (χ2=7.2, P = 0.03). Poor prognostic factors for success were PVR at presentation, inferior breaks and increasing number of detached quadrants. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates a success rate comparable with other centres with a low rate of final failure. Despite sub-specialism and the great advances in VR surgery, the biology of RRD dictates a failure rate. New therapies may improve results in the future.

Developing a Comprehensive Perioperative Education Curriculum for Internal Medicine Residency Training.

Background: Patients undergoing surgery are becoming increasingly complex and internists are becoming more involved in their perioperative care. Therefore, new requirements from the ACGME/ABIM necessitate education in this area. We aim to discuss how our institution adapted a perioperative curriculum to fill this need. Methods: Perioperative education is primarily given to the residents during their one month rotation through the General Internal Medicine Consult Service rotation. This is an inpatient rotation that provides perioperative expertise to surgical teams, medicine consultation to medical subspecialty teams, and outpatient preoperative evaluations. Results: Our implementation complies with ACGME/ABIM requirements and ensures that the educational and clinical needs of our institution are met. Conclusions: Developing a new curriculum can be daunting. We hope that this explanation of our approach will aid others who are working to develop an effective perioperative curriculum at their institutions.

Salvage Fractionated Stereotactic Radiotherapy with or without Chemotherapy and Immunotherapy for Recurrent Glioblastoma Multiforme: A Single Institution Experience.

BACKGROUND: The current standard of care for salvage treatment of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is gross total resection and adjuvant chemoradiation for operable patients. Limited evidence exists to suggest that any particular treatment modality improves survival for recurrent GBM, especially if inoperable. We report our experience with fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (fSRT) with and without chemo/immunotherapy, identifying prognostic factors associated with prolonged survival. METHODS: From 2007 to 2014, 19 patients between 29 and 78 years old (median 55) with recurrent GBM following resection and chemoradiation for their initial tumor, received 18-35 Gy (median 25) in three to five fractions via CyberKnife fSRT. Clinical target volume (CTV) ranged from 0.9 to 152 cc. Sixteen patients received adjuvant systemic therapy with bevacizumab (BEV), temozolomide (TMZ), anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (125)I-mAb 425, or some combination thereof. RESULTS: The median overall survival (OS) from date of recurrence was 8 months (2.5-61) and 5.3 months (0.6-58) from the end of fSRT. The OS at 6 and 12 months was 47 and 32%, respectively. Three of 19 patients were alive at the time of this review at 20, 49, and 58 months from completion of fSRT. Hazard ratios for survival indicated that patients with a frontal lobe tumor, adjuvant treatment with either BEV or TMZ, time to first recurrence >16 months, CTV <36 cc, recursive partitioning analysis <5, and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status <2 were all associated with improved survival (P < 0.05). There was no evidence of radionecrosis for any patient. CONCLUSION: Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 1205 will establish the role of re-irradiation for recurrent GBM, however our study suggests that CyberKnife with chemotherapy can be safely delivered, and is most effective in patients with smaller frontal lobe tumors, good performance status, or long interval from diagnosis.

Symptomatic excyclotorsion following inferior transposition of both medial rectus muscles in patients with bilateral trochlear nerve palsy.

PURPOSE: To report the development of a large degree of excyclotorsion following inferior transposition of the medial rectus muscles in 5 patients with bilateral acquired trochlear nerve palsies that had previously undergone bilateral modified Harada-Ito procedures. METHODS: The medical records of 5 patients who had undergone Harada-Ito procedure for bilateral trochlear nerve palsy between 2002 and 2010 and medial rectus muscle infraplacement surgery between 2004 and 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: All 5 patients underwent a Fells-modified Harada-Ito procedure. All remained symptomatic due to a V pattern (eso- or exodeviation). Bilateral inferior transposition of the medial rectus muscles of either half or full tendon width was performed to alleviate this residual diplopia. The vertical transposition resulted in a symptomatic large degree of excyclotorsion (mean of 20°), which required reversal of the procedure. CONCLUSIONS: After inferior transposition of both medial rectus muscles in patients with bilateral superior oblique palsy who previously had bilateral modified Harada-Ito surgery, a large excyclotorsion (>20°) can occur. This can be managed by reversing the medial rectus transposition procedure.

Von Hippel Lindau disease: keep it in the family.

We describe a case of von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHL) through three generations of the same family. First presentation was a young female with a 6-week history of headaches behind the eyes. On examination she was found to have bilateral retinal capillary haemangiomas (RCH). Preliminary diagnosis of VHL was suspected and further investigations confirmed the initial diagnosis. The patient was found to have pancreatic and kidney lesions and her mother had a cerebellar haemangioblastoma. Following genetic testing, the VHL gene appeared in the 9-year-old boy. On recent presymptomatic ophthalmic screening, the child was found to have RCH. Both patient and child's RCHs were successfully managed with a variety of treatments.

Post-irradiation cutaneous angiosarcoma.

Angiosarcoma is a rare and highly malignant tumor with potential to recur despite treatment, and carries a poor prognosis. Previous radiation therapy and lymphedema are some of the known risk factors. We present a case of cutaneous angiosarcoma which occurred at lumpectomy site in a patient with a history of breast cancer and radiation to the breast. The tumor kept on recurring repetitively despite continual treatments, and the patient finally succumbed to the disease roughly four years after initial diagnosis.

Extranodal marginal zone B-cell mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma of cecum presenting as bright red bleed per rectum--a case report with review of literature.

INTRODUCTION: Primary colorectal lymphomas are particularly rare and contribute to 0.2% of all colorectal malignancies. Gastroentrointestinal (GI) tract is most commonly a secondary involvement site for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Primary NHL of GI tract are very rare, constituting about 1-4% of all GI tract malignancies. In GI tract, two-thirds of all cases occur in stomach followed by small intestine (9%). Clinical presentation depends upon the site of involvement. Pain, loss of appetite, and weight loss are the most common symptoms, while bleeding occurs more with gastric involvement. CASE REPORT: We present a case of a female presenting as bright red bleed per rectum who was found to have a cecal mass, subsequently diagnosed as extranodal marginal zone B-cell mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma with extensive plasma cell differentiation. CONCLUSION: The diagnosis may be challenging, but a solitary extranodal plasmacytoma and multiple myeloma must be excluded in all such cases.